Electric attachment for rocking-chairs.



Nd. 759,148. T PATENTED MA-Y 3,1904;

G. M. ALLEN & s. M. GAWKER. ELECTRIC ATTACHMENT FOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 3. 1903.

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ELECTRIC ATTACHMENT FOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

LPPLIOATION FILED NOV. 3. 1903.

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,148. PATENTED MAY 3, 1904.

G. M. ALLEN & S. M. CAWKER. ELECTRIC ATTACHMENT FOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

APPLICATION FILED No'v.a.1s0a.

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UNITED STATES Patented May 3, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

GAINES M. ALLEN AND SAMUEL M. CAVVKER, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

ELECTRIC ATTACHMENT FOR ROCKING-CHAIRS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 759,148, dated May 3, 1904. Application fli November 3,1903. Serial No. 179,738. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, GAIN s M. ALLEN and SAMUEL M. OAWKER, citizens of the United States of America, residing in the city and county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Attachments for Rocking- Ohairs; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in an electric attachmentfor rocking-chairs or other similar or analogous rocking devices, our object being to equip a chair with an electrical apparatus whereby the rocking movement of the chair through the instrumentality of suitable mechanism operates an electrical generator, the current from which is delivered to plates conveniently located-as, for instance, on the arms of the chair-so that a person sitting in the chair may by touching these plates receive an electrical current, his body completing the circuit. Conductors may be connected with these plates upon the chair by any suitable detachable contrivance, the other extremities of the conductors being provided with electrodes which may be placed upon any part of the body for the purpose of giving the patient electrical treatment.

Having briefly and in a very general way outlined our improved'construction, as well as some of the objects we expect to obtain thereby, we will proceed to describe the same in detail, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which is illustrated an embodiment thereof.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of a rocking-chair equipped with our improved apparatus, the housing being closed to conceal the mechanism as when the device is in use. Fig. 2 is an underneath view of the same. Fig. 3 is an inside View of the rocker upon which the operating-lever is fulcrumed. Fig. 4 is a detail View of the rear extremity of the lever in which the lower extremity of the upwardly-extending connecting-rod is socketed by means of a cylindrical bearing.

Fig. 5 is a side view of the mechanism mount:

ed on the lower surface of the chair-seat, the housing being removed to disclose the operating mechanism. -Fig. 6 is a section taken on the line 6 6, Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a detail view of one of the operating-gears. Fig. 8 is an underneath view of the apparatus, illustrating the electrical conductors leading from the pawl to the generator. Fig. 9 is a detail view of the upper extremity of the connecting-rod which leads from the rocker-lever to one of the operating-levers, Fig. 10 is a detail view of the make-and-break wheel.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the views.

Let A designate a rocking-chair of ordinary construction and provided with arms A and rockers A Uponone of the rockers is mounted and fulcrumed, as shownat A, a lever B, provided with forward and rear lugs B and B respectively. These lugs engage the surface upon which the chair stands and alternately project below the rocker sufficiently to operate the leverB. Con nected with the forward extremity of the lever B, which is provided with a socket B for the purpose, is an upwardly-extendingconnecting-rod O, provided with a cylindrical lower extremity O, adapted to engage the counterpart socket B The mouth of the socket B is contracted to prevent the parts C from slipping out by an upward movement. The socket B is open entirely through the lever and on the side opposite the rocker is held in place byaleaf-spring g D. This spring is secured to one extremity by a screw D, while its opposite extremity engages the part O of the connecting-rod. The spring extremity remote from the fastening-screw may be pulled outwardly suflicientl y to detach the lower extremity of the rod C from the lever B whenever it is desirable or necessary to do so. The upper extremity of the rod O is provided with a notch G which is normally held in engagement with a pin E, projecting from the rear extremity of a lever fulcrumed at F on a hanger F made fast to the bottom A of the chair by means of suitable fastening devices F The extremity of this lever remote from the pin E is provided with a short link F", whose extremity remote from the lever is connected, as shown at F, with a double arm F, whose extremity remote from the link is movabl y mounted on a shaft G. Mounted on the arm F between its two members is a spring-held dog or pawl F which engages a ratchet-wheel H, made fast on the shaft G. The shaft (3- is journaled in two hangers I, made fast to a plate J secured to the lower surface A of the chair-bottom. Another lever (designated K) has its rear extremity fulcrumed at K on a hanger K made fast to the chair-bottom, as shown at K". This lever is connected with the lever F, as shown at K", at a point between the fulcrum F and the pin E. The forward extremity of the lever K is connected with a short link K of substantially the same construction as the link F. This link K is also connected with an arm K, substantially of the same construction as the arm F. The arm K" is loosely mounted on the shaft G and straddles a ratchet-wheel H, which is fast on the shaft (Sr and substantially of the same construction as the ratchet-wheel H. The arm I carries a spring-held pawl or dog K which engages the toothed periphery of the ratchet-wheel H. The extremity of the shaft G remote from the ratchet-wheel H is provided with a fast gear L, which meshes with a gear L, loosely mounted on a shaft L journaled in the frame-arms L of an electrical generator of the magneto-electric type. The gear L is provided with spring-held grippingdogs L", which are adapted to engage a hub L, made fast on the shaft L and so arranged that the rotation of the gear L in one direction operates the shaft L in the same direction. The shaft L however, is free to run away from the gear L, so to speak, or move faster than the said gear in the direction of the gears movement. Located adjacent the gear L, but fast on the shaft L is a smaller gear or pinion L, which meshes with a gear L fast on adrum L, which conceals a helical spring L, one extremity of which is made fast to the. shaft L as shown at L while the other extremity of the spring is made fast to the gear L, as shown at L. The drum L and the gear L are loosely mounted on the shaft L The extremity of the shaft L remote from the pinion L" is provided with a gear L, which is made fast on the said shaft and meshes with a pinion L fast on an armature-shaft L of the electrical generator, the latter being provided with a field magnet M, between the poles of which is located the armature-coil N of the generator. The magnet M is mounted on the frame L the latter being secured to the bottom of the chair by means of screws L. The shaft L is also provided with a balance wheel L An additional wheel O is made fast on the shaft L and is engaged by a metal brush O, made fast to the chair-bottom A, as shown at O Mounted on the armatureshaft and made fast thereto is an insulated ring P, which is engaged by a brush P, secured to the wood of the chair-bottom, as shown at P One terminal of the coil N is connected with the ring P, while the other terminal is connected with the field or frame in the usual manner. One electrical conductor, the same being designated P, leads from the brush P to a contact-plate P, made fast to the under surface of one arm of the chair, while another conductor, P leads from the frame part L to a contact-plate P, made fast to the under surface of the other arm of the chair. The plates P and P are attached to the forward extremities of the chair in such a manner that a person resting his hands upon the forward arm extremities may easily touch these plates by extending his fingers downwardly underneath the chair-arm and in this manner receive the electrical current through his hands. Another conductor, which may be termed a shunt or short-circuit conductor and designated P also leads from the brush P to the brush O, which engages the wheel O, as heretofore explained. This wheel O may be termed the make-and-break wheel, since its surface is notched, and the notches between the projections are filled with insulating material, so that during the operation of the machine the brush alternately engages the metal of the wheel and the insulation. Of course when it engages the metal part of the wheel there is a short circuit from the brush P of one pole of the generator through the brush O and the wheel O to the field or the other pole of the generator; but when the brush O engages an insulating part the current can only pass from the conductors P and P to the plates P and P. This interruption of the current resulting from the short circuit produces a peculiar pounding or striking effect experienced by the person whose hands are in engagement with the contactplates of the chair-arm, and this makes the current apparently much stronger, at least the effect much stronger. The apparatus may be thrown in and out of gear or rendered inoperative during the rocking movement of the chair by disconnecting the upper extremity of the rod O from the pin E. complished through the instrumentality of a leaf-spring Q, connected at one extremity with a rod O, as shown at Q, and at the other extremity with an arm Q pivoted on a small plate Q, fast on the bottom of the chair, as shown at Q". The extremity of the arm Q remote from its connection with the spring Q, passes through a sort of loop Q", made fast to an arm Q, pivoted on a small plate Q as shown at Q. The extremity of the arm remote from its connection with the arm Q is provided with an operating knob or handle Q"; The full-line position of the arms Q" and Q is the position of the said parts when the apparatus is in gear, while the dotted- This is acline position of the same parts (see Fig. 8) indicates the position of these parts when the device is out of gear or when the rod C is disengaged from the pin E. The spring Q acts as a sort of flexible connecting-rod between the arm Q and the upper extremity of the rod C, and when the arm Q is thrown to the dotted-line position in Fig. 8 the movement is sufficient to actuate the arm C and disengage it from the pin E. When it is desired to throw the parts back into gear or into the operative relation, the knob Q is moved from the dotted-line position to the full-line position, when the pin Q on the arm Q," acts on the arm Q and throws its inner extremity in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 8, and ifthe notch C of the rod C is above the pin E the said pin will form a stop to the rod C and prevent it from moving immediately backward or until the device has been operated to bring the notch C of the rod G into position to engage the pin E, and before the rod 0 reaches the position just named the spring Q will be bent or bowed, as shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings, whereby the spring is placed under tension. Hence the instant the rod C is in position so that its notch C is opposite the pin E the spring will force the arm into engagement with the said pin and the parts will be in a different position, the spring straightening itself, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 8.

The gear L is provided with a stop-pin R, which lies in the path of a screw R, fast on the hub of the wheel L and turning with the last-named wheel. In the operation of the machine the gear L under the influence of the spring L moves until the screw R engages the pin R, in which event the gear L and the drum L ceases to move until the operation of the device is again commenced by turning the shaft L together with the ratchets H H and the gear L, in which event the pin R always keeps in advance of the screw R; but the latter cannot move beyond the pin R.

From the foregoing description the use and operation of the device will be readily understood. The person who uses it sits in the chair and rocks in the ordinary manner. This movement operates the lever B, since the lugs B and B alternately engage the surface upon which the chair stands, thus giving a rocking movement to the lever B, whereby the rod C is given a reciprocating movement, being first moved upwardly and then moved downwardly. When the rod C moves upwardly, the forward extremity of the lever F is moved downwardly, its dog F slipping over the teeth of its ratchet-wheel, while at the same time the forward extremity of the lever K is moved upwardly and its dog K, acting on its ratchet-wheel, turns the shaft G, and thereby operates the gears L and L, the gear L acting on the gear L to impart the initial movement to the armature through the instrumentality of the gears L and L. It may be said that previous to beginning the operation of the machine the spring L is set at a predetermined tension, but is prevented from unwinding when the machine is at rest by the engagement of the screw R with the pin R, which forms a stop, as heretofore explained, since the strength of the spring L is not suflicient to operate the entire apparatus. However, as soon as the rockingopera tion begins and the lever K acts to turn the shaft G, as just explained, the spring L", together with the gear L and the drum attached thereto, begins to rotate and continues to rotate as long as the pin R is keptin advance of the screw R. After the device is started the shaft L will run away from the gear L, so to speak, since the gear L is relatively large with reference to the pinion L. As soon as the forward extremity-of the lever K reaches its upward limit of movement the chair is tipped rearwardly on its rockers, whereby the lug B of the lever B is brought in contact with the floor or other surface, whereby the connecting-rod C is moved downwardly, thus raising the forward extremity of the lever F and depressing the corresponding extremity of the lever K. The lever F, acting on its ratchet-wheel, through the instrumentality of its dog turns the shaft Gr, while the dog connected with the forward extremity of the lever K simply slips over. its ratchet, as will be readily understood. In this manner the two levers F and K act to impart a continuous or an approximately continuous rotation to the shaft G, and the movement of the latter winds the spring L, and the said spring acts to turn the gear L which, meshing with the pinion L, operates the shaft L which through the instrumentality of the gears L and L rotates the armature of the generator, thus producing a current in the coil of the armature which under ordinary circumstances would be completed through the conductors P P, the contact-plates P and P, and the body of the person sitting in the chair and holding his hands upon the said contact-plates. However, by virtue of the conductor P leading to the brush 0 the current is shunted or shortcircuited from the insulated ring P of the armature-shaft back through the field or frame every time the brush 0 engages a tooth 0* of the wheel 0, while as the brush engages the insulating material 0 between the teeth 0 there is no short circuit and the current through the armature-coil is uninterrupted. Hence the current generated in the machine is intermittently short-circuited or interrupted by virtue of the wire P, the brush 0, and the teeth of the wheel 0, thus producing in the circuit, and particularly at the contactplates P and P, a peculiar effect and causing the person in the chair and whosehands are on the contact-plates to experience a peculiar beating or vibration, the strength or force of which is dependent upon the, rapidity with l which the chair is rocked. The harder the rocking and the greater the current generated in the machine the stronger is the beating or vibratory sensation. It is also found in the use of the chair that when the brush O is disengaged from the wheel 0 that it takes a very rapid movement of the chair to cause the person therein and whose hands are on the con tact-plates of the arms to feel or experience any current whatever. Hence the wheel 0 and its short-circuiting connection are important features in connection with the mechanism, since through their instrumentality the current is intermittently broken or interrupted, producing an important effect upon the person under treatment.

Attention is called to the fact that the mechanism mounted on the under surface of the chair-seat is entirely concealed when the chair is in use by two housing parts, (designated S and S, respectively.) The housing part S is hinged at and connected at its opposite extremity with the chair-seat by means of a hook S, engaging an eye S" in the bottom of the seat. These housing parts are easily removed or opened when for any reason it is necessary to gain access to the mechanism concealed thereby.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is- 1. The combination with a rocking-chair, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, and suitable means connected with a rocker of the chair for operating the generator during the rocking movement of the chair, and separated contacts mounted on the chair and connected with the opposite poles of the generator.

2. The combination with a rocking-chair, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, a spring connected with the generator for operating the same and having a predetermined tension, and means connected with the rocking-chair and operated by the rocking movement of the chair for winding the spring simultaneously with the operation of the generator and whereby the tension of the spring is continually maintained.

3. The combination with a rocking-chair or other similar rocking device, of a lever :ful crumed on one of the rockers and having projections at its extremities adapted to alternately engage the surface upon which the chair rests during the rocking movement of the latter, an electrical generator mounted on the 1 rocking device, and suitable means connecting the said lever with the generator for operating the latter during the rocking movement of the device.

1. The combination with a rocking-chair, of a device pivotally mounted on a rocker of the chair and adapted to be moved on its pivot during the rocking movement of the chair, an

electrical generator mounted on the chair, a spring having a predetermined tension connected with the generator in operative relation, and means connected with the spring and actuated from the device on the rocker of the chair, for winding the spring simultaneously with the unwinding movement incident to the operation of the machine.

5. The combination with a rocking-chair, of a device pivotally mounted on a rocker of the chair and having lugs at its extremities arranged to project below the rocker and engaging the surface upon which the rocker stands, whereby the rocking movement of the chair actuates the said device, an electrical generator mounted on the chair, a helical spring connected in operative relation with the generator, a ratchet connected in operative relation for winding the spring, a lever arranged to act on the ratchet to perform the spring-winding function, and a suitable connection between the lever and the device on the chairlOCkCI, for actuating the lever in the performance of its function.

6. The combination with a r ')cl(ingchair or other suitable rocking amiiaratus, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, a helical spring, a shaft with which one extremity of the spring is connected, a drum with which the other extremity of the spring is connected, a gear connection between the drum and the armature of the generator, whereby the spring is adapted to actuate the generator, and suitable means connected with the rocker of the chair and actuated by the rocking movement of the latter, for winding the spring simultaneously with the unwinding movement incident to the operation of the generator.

7. The combination with a chair or other suitable rocking device, of an electrical generator mounted on the rocking device, a gearing connection between the spring and the armature of the generator, a shaft with which the said spring is connected, ratchet-wheels fast on the said shaft, levers provided with dogs engaging said ratchet-wheels, the levers being connected to act alternately on their ratchetwheels to rotate the shaft in a direction to wind the spring, and suitable means connected with a rocker of the device and with the said levers whereby as the device is rocked, the levers are actuated to perform the springwinding function simultaneously with the action of the latter during the operation of the generator.

8. The combination with a rocking-chair, of an electrical generator mounted thereon,a helical spring connected with the generator in operative relation to actuate the latter, and suitable means connected with the rocking-chair and operated by the rocking movement of the chair for winding the spring simultaneously with the unwinding of the latter due to the operation of the generator.

9. The combination with a rocking-chair or other suitable rocking device, of a lever fulcrumed on a rocker of the device and adapted to engage the surface upon which the rocker sits as the latter is rocked, an electrical generator mounted on the rocking device, a heli cal spring connected in operative relation with the generator, a shaft with which the spring is connected, ratchet-wheels fast on the said shaft, levers and dogs connected with the ratchet-wheels and with each otherwhereby the levers are adapted to be alternately actuated to turn the said shaft, and a connecting rod leading from one of the last-named levers to the lever on a rocker of the device, whereby as the chair is rocked the levers connected with the ratchet-wheels are actuated to wind the spring.

10. The combination with a chair or other suitable rocking device, of a lever pivotally mounted on a rocker of the device and adapted to engage the surface upon which the device stands as the latter is rocked, a rod leading upwardly from the said lever, a second lever suitably fulcrumed on the device and connected with the upper extremity of the said rod, a third lever fulcrumed on the device and connected with the second lever at a point between the fulcrums of the second and third levers, an electrical generator mounted on the device, a shaft also journaled on the device, ratchet-wheels fast on the shaft, dogs connected with the second and third levers and adapted to act on the ratchet-wheels to turn the shaft, a helical spring having one end connected with the shaft, a gear with which the other end of the spring is connected, and a suitable operative connection between the last-named gear and the armature of the generator.

11. The combination with a rocking-chair or other suitable rocking device, of an electrical generator mounted on the rocking device, means also mounted on the device and connected with one rocker thereof for actuating the generator during the rocking movement of the'device, separated contacts mounted on the device and electrically connected with the opposite poles of the generator, and suitable means also mounted on the device for intermittently interrupting the generator-current.

12. The combination with a rocking-chair, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, means mounted on the chair for automatically actuating the generator during the rocking movement of the chair, separated contactplates mounted on the chair, electrical conductors leading from the respective contactplates to the opposite poles of the generator, a make-and-break wheel also automatically actuated during the rocking movement of the chair, a brush engaging said wheel, and a conductor leading from one pole of the source to the said make-and-break wheel, the latter being connected with the field of the generator and having separated metallic contact-points on its periphery, whereby the electrical current is intermittently short-circuited.

13. The combination with a rocking-chair or other suitable rocking structure, of a generator mounted on the rocking structure, means also mounted on the structure for automatically operating the generator during the rocking movement of the structure, means for intermittently short-circuiting the current, contact-plates mounted on the chair, and conductors leading from the poles of the battery to the respective contact-plates.

1 1. The combination with a rocking-chair,

of an electrical generator mounted thereon,

a shaft suitably journaled, a helical spring mounted on said shaft and having one extremity connected therewith, a drum loose on the said shaft and connected with the opposite extremity of the spring whereby as the shaft is actuated in one direction the spring is wound, a counter-shaft located between the spring-shaft and the armature-shaft, and a suitable gearing connection between the three shafts whereby the action of the spring operates the generator, and suitable means connected with the chair for automatically and constantly restoring the tension of the spring during the rocking movement of the chair, simultaneously with the unwinding action of the spring incident to the operation of the generator.

15. The combination with a rocking-chair, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, a counter-shaft, a gearing connection between the counter-shaft and the armature-shaft, a third shaft, a spring surrounding the third shaft and having one extremity connected therewith, a drum loose on the third shaft and with which the opposite extremity of the helical spring is connected, a gear fast on the drum but loose on the third shaft, a gear fast on the third shaft, a third gear loose on the counter-shaft, dogs connected with said gear whereby the counter-shaft is operated by the movement of the third gearin one direction, a pinion fast on the counter-shaft and meshing with the gear connected with the drum, a stop mounted on the second shaft, and a projection connected with the drum-gear and in whose path the said stop is located during the operation of the device, and suitable means mounted on the chair and automatically actuated by the rocking movement of the chair for restoring the tension of the spring simultaneously with the unwinding of the spring incident to the operation of the generator.

16. The combination with a rocking-chair, of a generator mounted thereon, means mounted on the chair and automatically actuated by the rocking movement of the chair for operating the generator, and suitable means also mounted on the chair for breaking the connection between the operating means and the generator.

17. The combination with a rocking-chair, ol an electrical generator mounted thereon, a lever fulcrumed on one rocker of the chair and having its extremities provided with projections adapted to engage the surface upon which the chair rests during the rocking movement of the latter, a spring for actuating the motor, levers for restoring the tension of the spring simultaneously with its unwinding action due to the operation of the motor, a connecting-rod leading from the lever on the chair-rocker to the said spring-restoring levers, and means connected with the said rod for disconnecting it from the spring-restoring levers at will.

18. The combination with a rocking-chair or other similar rocking structure, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, a powerspring connected in operative relation with the generator and at a predetermined tension, and means automatically operated by the rocking movement of the chair for starting the generator simultaneously with the beginning of the spring winding or restoring movement, the generator-starting means being independent in its action on the generator, from the action of the spring on the generator.

19. The combination with a rocking-chair or other similar rocking structure, of an electrical generator mounted thereon, a powerspring connected in operative relation with the generator and at a predetermined tension,

means actuated by the rocking movement of the chair for maintaining the tension of the spring during its action on the generator, and means also actuated by the rocking movement of the chair and independent of the spring in its action on the generator, for starting the generator-armature.

In testimony whereof We afiix our signatures in presence of two Witnesses.

GAINES M. ALLEL SAMUEL M. CAXVKER. l/Vitnesses:

DENA NELSON, MARY C. LAMB. 

